Libby Baney: Twitter Accounts Promoting Illicit E-Pharmacies Put Consumers 'A Click Away' From Harm

A recent study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research found a high volume of Twitter activity—45,000 tweets in a two-week sample—promoting and providing access to illegal online pharmacies. In an article published in a number of outlets including the State Journal and PharmacyChoice.com, Libby Baney, Faegre Baker Daniels counsel and executive director of the Alliance for Safe Online Pharmacies (ASOP), said the study shows "consumers are just a click away from buying products that may cause harm, treatment failure or even death." 

“Of the 35,000-50,000 active online drug sellers, 97 percent do not comply with U.S. laws and 50 percent of medicines sold online are fake or counterfeit,” Baney said. "Buying prescription drugs from illegal online pharmacies also endangers consumers’ financial information and puts consumers at risk of identity theft."